I don't know as much about FreeSync as I do about G-SYNC, but I'm pretty sure FreeSync lacks the ability to adjust overdrive every frame (G2G transitions), and thus it can't prevent variable framerate ghosting as well (or at all) when compared to G-SYNC.

Very few monitors implementing FreeSync are tested for quality standards as well, so FreeSync quality/performance can vary wildly from monitor model to monitor model, while all monitors using G-SYNC must meet a certain standard. This is one of the reasons G-SYNC costs more; the other is that it is hardware-based, and must replace the display's standard internal scaler with its own proprietary chip/module.

Finally, I know FreeSync once had issues in the minimum refresh range (under 30 fps), but I'm not certain if that's still the case.

jorimt wrote:Finally, I know FreeSync once had issues in the minimum refresh range (under 30 fps), but I'm not certain if that's still the case.

It's still the case. FreeSync monitors have a range where Freesync can work in. If you go above or below, freesync deactivates. There are 144Hz freesync monitors out there that have a range from 45Hz to 90Hz, for example. Anything below or above will get freesync to deactivate.

G-sync always works with the whole range of the monitor's refresh rate. From 1Hz up to the monitor's maximum refresh rate.

So when buying a freesync monitor, you MUST make sure to check what the freesync range is in order to avoid nasty surprises. Also, it's very important to consult reviews of the monitor to see if there's any overdrive issues while freesync is active. As jorimt mentioned, overdrive in freesync monitors is implemented by the monitor vendor, not by AMD. Overdrive quality can vary a lot there. With g-sync, you always get at least a decent overdrive implementation.

The bottom line is: if a freesync monitor has a large range (at least from 30Hz and up to the monitor's max) and its overdrive implementation is good, then it's not going to be inferior to g-sync in any way. Except for under 30FPS situations, but a decent GPU should be able to keep that from happening. Unless you're playing games locked at 30FPS (not common, but there's a few of those.)

The views and opinions expressed in my posts are my own and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Blur Busters.

jorimt wrote:I don't know as much about FreeSync as I do about G-SYNC, but I'm pretty sure FreeSync lacks the ability to adjust overdrive every frame (G2G transitions), and thus it can't prevent variable framerate ghosting as well (or at all) when compared to G-SYNC.

While true in the past, NIXEUS has a new upcoming monitor with variable overdrive with FreeSync.

@lukeman3000, G-SYNC + Fast Sync acts exactly like G-SYNC + v-sync on within the G-SYNC range (inside max refresh rate of display). There is only a difference between those scenarios when you exceed the G-SYNC range, at which point (with G-SYNC + Fast Sync + no fps limiter), G-SYNC disables, and Fast Sync enables.

jorimt wrote:@lukeman3000, G-SYNC + Fast Sync acts exactly like G-SYNC + v-sync on within the G-SYNC range (inside max refresh rate of display). There is only a difference between those scenarios when you exceed the G-SYNC range, at which point (with G-SYNC + Fast Sync + no fps limiter), G-SYNC disables, and Fast Sync enables.

For a variety of reasons, there is zero benefit to using G-SYNC with Fast Sync in my opinion.

Furthermore, if I'm using an FPS limiter to stay below my monitor's refresh rate, then it really doesn't matter whether or not I have V-Sync or Fast selected, because I should always stay within G-Sync range, which is preferable... right?

Also, how many FPS below the monitor's refresh rate do you recommend to cap at? And is RTSS still recommended, or is there a better option?

jorimt wrote:@lukeman3000, G-SYNC + Fast Sync acts exactly like G-SYNC + v-sync on within the G-SYNC range (inside max refresh rate of display). There is only a difference between those scenarios when you exceed the G-SYNC range, at which point (with G-SYNC + Fast Sync + no fps limiter), G-SYNC disables, and Fast Sync enables.

For a variety of reasons, there is zero benefit to using G-SYNC with Fast Sync in my opinion.

Furthermore, if I'm using an FPS limiter to stay below my monitor's refresh rate, then it really doesn't matter whether or not I have V-Sync or Fast selected, because I should always stay within G-Sync range, which is preferable... right?

Also, how many FPS below the monitor's refresh rate do you recommend to cap at? And is RTSS still recommended, or is there a better option?

There *should* be no difference in that situation, but the outliers in frame time could introduce one. Say you have a normal frame, a long frame and a short frame in that sequence, both will display the normal frame twice, and fast sync will drop the long frame in favor of the short one, while v-sync will display all 3. So the median latency is identical, fast sync recovers from hitches faster, but v-sync recovers from hitches more smoothly.

In game cap is always preferable if it's available, other than that, RTSS is fine.